Pooling network devices

ABSTRACT

A method, system, and medium are provided for pooling network devices and updating service plans in a wireless network. The system includes at least one base station and network devices that are part of a wireless network. The base station is configured to group network devices based on a location identifier of each network device. The base station may pool network resources of network devices in each group. The base station, in turn, updates the service plans for customers having addresses that correspond to the location identifiers to reflect the grouped network devices and the pooled resources.

SUMMARY

A high-level overview of various embodiments of the invention areprovided here for that reason, to provide an overview of the disclosureand to introduce a selection of concepts that are further describedbelow in the detailed-description section. This summary is not intendedto identify key features or essential features of the claimed subjectmatter, nor is it intended to be used as an aid in isolation todetermine the scope of the claimed subject matter. In brief and at ahigh level, this disclosure describes, among other things, ways to groupnetwork devices having machine-to-machine components (M2M) and updateservice plans associated with network devices.

The network devices may be connected to a wireless network having atleast one base station. In some embodiments, the base station isconfigured to receive a location from network devices that connect to itvia a wireless network. In turn, the base station may determine groupsbased on the locations received from the network devices. In each group,the network devices share a common geographic location. The base stationmay identify customers associated with the common geographic locationsfor each group. The network resources for each network device in a groupmay be pooled by the base station. The pooled network resources may beshared by each network device in the group. The base station may modifybilling records associated with a customer to reflect the groups thatare associated with the customer. In some embodiments, the groups arecreated dynamically and network devices that are outside a boundaryassociated with a common geographic location are not included in thegroup.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

Illustrative embodiments of the invention are described in detail belowwith reference to the attached drawing figures, and wherein:

FIG. 1 depicts a block diagram of an exemplary network device inaccordance with embodiments of the invention;

FIG. 2 depicts a network diagram of an exemplary communication system inaccordance with embodiments of the invention;

FIG. 3 depicts an exemplary logic diagram for configuring networkdevices in accordance with embodiments of the invention; and

FIG. 4 depicts an exemplary logic diagram for modifying service plans inaccordance with embodiments of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The subject matter of the patent is described with specificity herein tomeet statutory requirements. However, the description itself is notintended to define the invention, which is what the claims do. Rather,the claimed subject matter might be embodied in other ways to includedifferent steps or combinations of steps similar to the ones describedin this document, in conjunction with other present or futuretechnologies. Moreover, although the term “step” or other generic termmight be used herein to connote different components or methodsemployed, the terms should not be interpreted as implying any particularorder among or between various steps herein disclosed unless and exceptwhen the order of individual steps is explicitly described.

Embodiments of the invention are directed to network devices configuredwith M2M components. The network devices may include wireless devices,home appliances, washers, dryers, consumer electronics, televisions,digital signs, vending machines, vehicle or shipment tracking devices,digital books, image and video recorders, hand-held scanners, etc. TheM2M component may include communication interfaces, storage, andprocessors for executing instructions. The M2M component provides thenetwork devices with access to several communication networks, includinga personal area network and wireless network. When connected to thewireless network, a base station is configured to monitor the networkdevices.

The base station may also be configured to update billing records basedon groups that are dynamically formed based on the location of thenetwork devices. The M2M component on the network device may requestthat the networked device be included in a group of the network devices.The base station, in turn, determines whether the location of thenetwork device is within a boundary of the other network devices. Whenthe network device is within the boundary, the base station updates thegroup to include the network device with the other network devices. Incertain embodiments, the network device is also assigned an identifierassociated with the group by the base station. The group may beassociated with a service plan that covers network devices that are inclose proximity to each other. Accordingly, the network devices in thegroup are configured to share network resources that are pooled by thebase station.

For instance, a fast food restaurant, like FOODNOW, may install digitalsignage having M2M components. The digital signage may present high-techmenu boards both behind the counter and outside at a drive-throughwindow for each FOODNOW location. Some stores need four digital signs,some need five digital signs, and others need more than 6 digital signs.

The digital signs at the FOODNOW restaurants may utilize the M2Mcomponents to identify current locations of the digital signs and toreport the current locations to base stations on a wireless network. Tomeet budget predications, corporate headquarters for FOODNOW may limitevery store to the same monthly expenditure, e.g. $100, for wirelessservices associated with all of the digital signs up to a specificthreshold number, e.g., seven, associated with each store. Once a basestation associated with the digital signs for a particular storereceives the location and determines that digital signs at one or moreFOODNOW restaurants reached the specific threshold number, the basestation may cause any additional digital signage added to therestaurants to operate independent of the other digital signs.

In certain embodiments, the M2M components in the digital signs maydetect proximity of each other within a boundary. The base station mayidentify the boundaries of each property of the FOODNOW restaurant andshare pooled network resources associated with each digital sign up tothe specific threshold.

Accordingly, the base stations on the wireless network and the M2Mcomponents may simplify installation and management of the digitalsigns. FOODNOW restaurants may utilize the base stations to dynamicallygroup multiple digital signs into specific billing plans associated eachFOODNOW restaurant based on the locations of the digital signs and theirrelative proximity to each other. FOODNOW restaurants may no longerreceive separate wireless service billing records for each new digitalsign that is added up to the threshold limit. Instead, the billingrecord may include each digital sign based on groups formed by the basestations for each FOODNOW restaurant.

Throughout this patent, several acronyms and shorthand notations areused to aid the understanding of certain concepts pertaining to theassociated system and services. These acronyms and shorthand notationsare solely intended for the purpose of providing an easy methodology ofcommunicating the ideas expressed herein and are in no way meant tolimit the scope of the embodiments of the invention. The following is alist of these acronyms:

-   -   ATM Automated Teller Machine    -   BTS Base Transceiver Station    -   CDMA Code Division Multiple Access    -   CD-ROM Compact Disc, Read Only Memory    -   DVD Digital Versatile Disc    -   EEPROM Electrically Erasable Programmable Memory    -   ESN Electronic Serial Number    -   GPRS General Packet Radio Service    -   GPS Global Positioning System    -   GSM Global System for Mobile communications (Groupe Special        Mobile)    -   ID Identifier    -   IP Internet Protocol    -   IPv4 Internet Protocol Version Four    -   IPv6 Internet Protocol Version Six    -   LED Light Emitting Diode    -   LTE Long Term Evolution    -   M2M Machine-to-Machine    -   NFC Near-Field-Communication    -   PDA Personal Data Assistant    -   RAM Random Access Memory    -   ROM Read Only Memory    -   RNC Radio Network Controller    -   TDMA Time Division Multiple Access    -   UMTS Universal Mobile Telecommunications System    -   USB Universal Serial Bus    -   Wi-Fi Wireless Fidelity    -   WiMAX Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access

Embodiments of the invention can take the form of a method, sever,network device, system, or computer-readable media embodied with aspecific set of computer-executable instructions. Computer-readablemedia include both volatile and nonvolatile media, removable andnonremovable media, and contemplate media readable by a database, aswitch, and various other network and computing devices.Computer-readable media include communication media and computer storagemedia implemented in any method or technology that stores information.Examples of stored information include computer-useable instructions,data structures, program components, and other data representations.Examples of computer-readable media include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flashmemory or other memory technology, CD-ROM, digital versatile discs(DVD), holographic media or other optical disc storage, magneticcassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage, and other magneticstorage devices. The computer-readable media can store data momentarily,temporarily, or permanently.

In one embodiment, the network device is configured with several inputand output components. Additionally, an M2M component may be installedin the network device. The M2M component may include applications forcommunicating with different networks. The M2M component may utilize theinput and output component of the network device to implement operationsrequested by the applications of the M2M component. The M2M componentmay allow the network device to switch between communication networksmaintained by disparate carriers. The network device having the M2Mcomponent may also be configured to periodically provide usageinformation and location information to a base station on a wirelessnetwork.

FIG. 1 depicts a block diagram of an exemplary network device inaccordance with embodiments of the invention. Turning now to FIG. 1, ablock diagram of an illustrative network device is provided andreferenced generally by numeral 100. Although some components are shownin the singular, they may be plural. For example, network device 100might include multiple processors or multiple radios, etc. A networkdevice 100 may be one of many devices, including, but not limited to, awireless phone, vending machine, video and image capture device, digitalsign, television, a laptop, a PDA, a handheld device, smart meters,handheld scanners, vehicle tracking components, e-books, ATMs, consumerelectronics, etc. As illustratively shown, network device 100 includes abus 110 that directly or indirectly couples various components togetherincluding memory 112, a processor 114, a presentation component 116, aradio 117, input/output ports 118, input/output components 120, and apower supply 122.

We previously have described various memory components what memory 112might take the form of. Memory component 112 can include any type ofmedium that is capable of storing information (e.g., a database 112A).The database 112A may be configured to store provisioning credentials,including a network identifier; a group identifier, pool identifier ageor usage associated with the network device 100 in a wireless network;location information based on GPS and any information that the networkdevice transmits to the wireless network. The database 112A may alsostore applications associated with a M2M component installed on thenetwork device 100. Processor 114 might actually be multiple processorsthat receive instructions associated with the applications and processthe instructions accordingly. Presentation component 116 includes thelikes of a display, a speaker, as well as other components that canpresent information (such as a lamp (LED), or even lighted keyboards)associated with the outputs of applications or other components of thenetwork device.

The M2M component utilizes the communication interfaces of networkdevice 100 to communicate with network devices or a base station on thecommunication network. In an embodiment, an application on the M2Mcomponent reports statistics, including, but not limited to, location,age of wireless device, ESN, signal strength, battery power, usagepatterns of the wireless device, etc. The statistics may be stored inthe database 112A by the M2M component. Once the statistics arecollected, the M2M component may transmit them from the network device100 to at least one base station on the wireless network. In turn, thebase station may determine whether a pool is available for the networkdevice 100. If it's determined that a pool is available, the basestation may group the network device 100 with other network devices inthe pool. The network device 100 may be assigned a group identifier bythe base station. In turn, the network device may be configured tooperate in pool mode by the M2M component. Once in pool mode, thenetwork device may access the network resources associated with thepool. If it's determined that a pool is unavailable, the network device100, may be configured to operate in independent mode until a pool isidentified by the base station.

In some embodiments, the network resources on the wireless communicationnetwork may be bandwidth, airtime minutes available to a network device,a remote server like multimedia servers or short message servers, adatabase, or multimedia content available at different websites. Thecommunication interface of the network device 100 may be a radio 117that facilitates communication with a wireless telecommunicationsnetwork. Illustrative wireless telecommunications technologies includeCDMA, GPRS, TDMA, GSM, WIMAX, LTE, UMTS, and the like. In someembodiments, radio 117 might also facilitate other types of wirelesscommunications including Wi-Fi communications, Bluetooth™, Zigbee, orother near-field communication.

Input/output port 118 might take on a variety of forms. Illustrativeinput/output ports include a USB jack, stereo jack, infrared port,proprietary communications ports, and the like. Input/output components120 include items such as keyboards, microphones, touch screens, and anyother item usable to directly or indirectly input data into networkdevice 100. Power supply 122 includes items such as batteries, fuelcells, or any other component that can act as a power source to powernetwork device 100.

Accordingly, a network device 100 may be grouped based on the statisticsassociated with the network device. The network device 100 may reportstatistics to a base station, which may select an appropriate group forthe network device 100. It will be understood and appreciated by thoseof ordinary skill in the art that the network device 100 shown in FIG. 1is merely an example of one suitable network device 100 and is notintended to suggest any limitation as to the scope of use orfunctionality of the embodiments of the invention. Neither should thenetwork device 100 be interpreted as having any dependency orrequirement related to any single component or combination of componentsillustrated therein. The single unit depictions are meant for clarity,not to limit the scope of embodiments in any form.

In some embodiments, a base station on the wireless network selectsnetwork devices that could be grouped based on statistics like locationor network identifier. The network device reports the location ornetwork identifier to the base station. In turn, the base stationmanages network resources available to the network devices that are partof the same group based on the statistics. Moreover, the base stationmay update billing records for one or more customers that are associatedwith the network devices in each of the groups identified by the basestation.

FIG. 2 depicts a network diagram of an exemplary communication system200 in accordance with embodiments of the invention. Turning now to FIG.2, an illustrative computing system 200 is provided and referencedgenerally by the numeral 200, which depicts an illustrative operatingenvironment for identifying at least one network device 210 that couldbe placed in a group. The computing system 200 may include a networkdevice 210, access components 216, RNC 218, BSC 220, network 230,multimedia content 240, and carrier database 250.

Network device 210 executes a M2M application 212 that shares statisticsassociated with the device. In one embodiment, the M2M application 212monitors statistics like a location of the network device, a networkidentifier for the network device, an age of the network device 210, andusage patterns of the network device 210. In turn, the M2M application212 may transmit the statistics to a BSC 220. In some embodiments, thenetwork device 210 is grouped with other network devices based on theshared statistics. The network device 210 may utilize network resourcesin a pool available to some other network devices 210 in the group whenaccessing the wireless network. In certain embodiments, the networkdevices may be grouped based on a range associated with the networkdevice's near-field channel like Bluetooth or a personal area network.In other words, a boundary associated with group of network devices mayoverlap with range for the near-field channel. When a non-group memberdevice is within range, it may be identified, in one embodiment, as apotential group member by the other network devices in the group. Inturn, the other network devices may inform the BSC 220 of the non-groupmember. The BSC 220 may add the non-group member in group if space isavailable as dictated by a service plan that covers the group.

Network devices 210 may communicate among themselves over a near-fieldchannel to determine when a non-member is within range. The groupmembers may be identified by a group identifier that is included inmessages delivered by each network device 210 in the same group. In oneembodiment, the network device 210 that could be placed in the group isidentified and reported by the at least one network device in the group.The non-group member network device 210 may be identified in thedatabase 250 and provided with a group identifier. In anotherembodiment, the network devices 210 in the same group may poolresources. For instance, each network device 210 may have individualplans, where each plan may be pooled by combining all capabilities,e.g., minutes, bandwidth, text messaging, any other service for thenetwork devices that are part of the same group. The base station maydynamically, add or remove network devices 210 based on service planlimits or changes in location associated with the grouped networkdevices.

In some embodiments, the database 250 stores statistics monitored by thenetwork device 210. The database 250 stores an identifier for eachnetwork device. The identifier may be an ESN or telephone numberassociated with the network device 210. The database 250 may associatethe identifier with the statistics received for the correspondingnetwork device. The statistics may include both device metrics andnetwork metrics. The device metrics include location, age, temperature,battery power, antennae orientation, location, memory usage, etc. Thenetwork metrics include signal strength, interference, bandwidth, ESN,usage patterns etc. Based on a combination of the device and networkmetrics, the network devices 210 are grouped together. The database 250may also store, in certain embodiments, network credentials, e.g. groupIDs, for network devices; service plans corresponding to the networkdevices; and discounts applied to accounts for users of the networkdevices.

Network device 210 communicates with an access component 216 by way of acommunication link 214. Communication link 214 may be a short-rangeconnection, a long-range connection, or a combination of both ashort-range and a long-range wireless telecommunications connection.When we refer to “short” and “long” types of connections, we do not meanto refer to the spatial relation between two devices. Instead, we aregenerally referring to short range and long range as differentcategories, or types, of connections (i.e., a primary connection and asecondary connection). A short-range connection may include a Wi-Ficonnection to a device (e.g., wireless hotspot) that provides access toa wireless communications network, such as a WLAN connection using802.11 protocol. A long-range connection may include a connection usingone or more of CDMA, GPRS, GSM, TDMA, and 802.16.

Generally, the access component 216 provides access to what some skilledartisans refer to as a wireless communications network 230. The accesscomponent 216 may be one or more of a base transceiver station (BTS)tower, a Wi-Fi Router, and any other device that facilitatescommunication between network device 210 and network 230. In oneembodiment, the access component 216 includes both a Wi-Fi Router and aBTS tower. In another embodiment, access component 216 is a BTS tower. Aradio network controller (RNC) 218 performs various functions, such asmanaging radio channels, power control, load control, admission control,packet scheduling, handover control, macrodiversity, security functions,and mobility management. A base station controller (BSC) 220 is alsoshown in FIG. 2. The BSC 220 acts as the intelligence behind basetransceiver stations (BTS) (not shown), and handles allocation of radiochannels, receives statistics from the network devices 210, and controlshandovers from one BTS to another BTS. In one embodiment, the BSC 220may group one or more network devices 210 based on the statisticsassociated with the network devices.

The components illustrated in FIG. 2, such as those that may be includedin a wireless communications network 230 comprise network resources andmultimedia content 240 accessible via the wireless communicationsnetwork 230. The wireless communication network 230 may be utilized bythe BSC 220 to receive statistics and network credentials (e.g., username, passwords, private keys, group IDs, etc.) from network devices210. Some network devices may not store their credentials in thedatabase 250 but retain the data on a local storage only for access bythe BSC 220. The network 230 may be an IP network operating one or bothof IPv4 and IPv6. The multimedia content 240 may include websites,videos, applications, etc. that are accessible by the network devices210.

The illustrated elements of computing system 200 are meant to beexemplary in nature, and the various lower-level details of the elementsare not elaborated on so as to not obscure the embodiments of theinvention. Clearly, some of the elements may be absent in someembodiments of the invention, and additional elements not shown may alsobe part of computing system 200. Attempting to show all of the variouselements of computing system 200 would obscure certain novel aspects,and we will refrain from such elaboration at least for the sake ofbrevity.

A remote server, e.g., BSC, periodically identifies, the network deviceson the wireless network that could be grouped together. Theidentification of the network device may based on several statisticsincluding, but not limited to: location, age, usage, movement,proximity, weather conditions, physical obstructions, interfering radiofrequencies. Upon identifying the network devices, the devices on thewireless network are grouped and the corresponding network resources arepooled.

FIG. 3 depicts an exemplary logic diagram for configuring networkdevices in accordance with embodiments of the invention. Turning now ofFIG. 3, in step 310, an M2M component in the network device may connectthe device to a wireless network in one of two modes: independent orpooled. In the step 312, the network device may determine whether a poolof network devices is available based on the location of the pool ofnetwork devices and the location of the network device. In someembodiments, the pool of network devices provides pooled resourcesassociated with network devices situated in a common geographiclocation. The pool may include the resources of each network devicewithin a boundary. The boundary of the common geographic location may beestablished by any combination of: a range of a near field communicationchannel of the network devices in the group or a property lotdescription that corresponds to a customer billed for the pool ofnetwork devices.

When the pool is available, in step 314, the network device may connectto the wireless network in pooled mode. The pooled mode, in someembodiments, allows the network devices to aggregate resources availableto each network device in the pool. Additionally, the pooled mode mayallow each network device to be billed to a customer associated with acommon location of the network devices in the pool. For instance, thecustomer having devices in pooled mode may be billed at a discountedrate as compared the customer of network device that operate in theindependent mode.

When the pool is unavailable, the network device may connect to thewireless network in an independent mode, in step 316. The independentmode of operation may incur a customer a higher billing charge permegabyte or per minute for a customer of the network device than thepooled mode.

As explained above, the network device may be configured in either anindependent mode or a pooled mode. The network devices that operate inpooled mode connect to a base station and may access network resourcesavailable to other network devices in the pool. The network devices thatoperate in independent mode connect to the base station but may notaccess network resources available to other network devices via a pool.

In yet another embodiment, a base station receives location identifiersfrom network devices. In turn, the base station groups the networkdevices based on at least the location identifiers. The base station maycorrelate the location of a customer's premise with location informationreceived from the M2M components in the network devices to identify thegroups. In some embodiments, a base station may establish parameters forthe size of the proximity range utilized to identify network devicesthat should be in a group. For instance, the base station may set aboundary that is commensurate with a property lot description associatedwith a property used by a customer. The range can be determined byvarious methods including, but not limited to: GPS coordinates, celltower triangulation, and NFC transmission tolerances. In turn, the basestation pools the network resources for the network devices in eachgroup. The base station, in one embodiment, may generate poolidentifiers based on coordinates, e.g., latitude and longitude, for thegroup. If needed, the billing record for customers assigned to a groupof network devices is updated to reflect the network devices and networkresources that are available in the group.

FIG. 4 depicts an exemplary logic diagram for modifying service plans inaccordance with embodiments of the invention. Turning now to FIG. 4, instep 410, the access component, e.g., base station controller receiveslocation identifiers from several network devices. In step 420, thenetwork devices are grouped, by the base station, based on the locationidentifiers.

In some embodiments, grouping network devices based on the locationidentifiers creates relationships between network devices that arewithin the defined proximity. The relationships may include anycombination of: sibling, parent, or child. Each network device in thegroup may be assigned a shared group identifier or pool identifier. Thenetwork devices may be any of the following: digital signs with M2Mcomponents or televisions with M2M components.

The network devices may be grouped based on a defined proximity by thebase station. In an embodiment, the network devices are grouped based onbeing within a range associated with a near-field communication channelgenerated by each of the network devices. The base station may removeone or more network devices from the group when the one or more networkdevice are no longer within a range associated with the near-fieldcommunication channel. Likewise, the base station may add one or morenetwork devices to the group when the one or more network devices arewithin a range associated with the near-field communication channel.

The base station may retrieve billing records having a service planassociated with the customers. The base station may parse the serviceplan to identify a limit on the number of network devices that may beassociated with the customer at a location corresponding to the groupand the added network device. Thus, in at least one embodiment, beforeadding one or more network devices to the group, the base station maycheck the limit and reject the one or more network devices when thelimit for the customer is reached.

The base station may, in step 430, pool available network resourcesassociated with each network device in the groups. In turn, billingrecords may be updated, by the base station, to indicate each group ofnetwork devices belongs to one or more customers associated withaddresses that corresponds to the location identifiers for each group ofnetwork devices, in step 440. The base station may update the billingrecords to reflect the pooled network resources that include anaggregate of the service maximums associated with each of the networkdevice in the group.

Thus, as a user's M2M component and devices move, the base stationupdates its records for the groups and corresponding pools. UsingNear-field communication and program logic, each M2M module on thenetwork devices may detect near-by network devices. The base station mayallow all devices within a set proximity to form groups, where networkresources like, bandwidth maximums are aggregated and shared, with eachnetwork device in the group. In some embodiments, the network devicesmay establish a point-to-point connection, that once broken by leavingthe set proximity would eliminate that network device from the group,pool, or service plan. The network device that leaves the group mayoperate independently and have its own dedicated plan until or unless itreturns into the range of the grouped network devices.

In summary, embodiments of the invention allow a network device to movefrom an independent mode to a pooled mode based on factors likeproximity to a specific location associated with a customer. In theindependent mode, the network device is provisioned devices and mayincur a casual rate at the base station for each communication on thewireless network. In the pooled mode, the network devices areprovisioned and are within a proximity of each other. Also, the networkdevices are within a specific location associated with the customer. Inone embodiment, the network devices may detect other network deviceswithin a boundary of the specific location upto a limit established bythe customer. The additional devices are included in the group and mayoperate as non-billing provisioned device. Thus, in most instances,operating several devices in pooled mode as opposed to independent modemay save the customer resources, funds, and personnel time. Because thebilling platform for the base station, among other things, dynamicallyassociates and disassociates devices in a group based on the physicalproximity.

Many different arrangements of the various components depicted, as wellas components not shown, are possible without departing from the scopeof the claims below. Embodiments of our technology have been describedwith the intent to be illustrative rather than restrictive. Alternativeembodiments will become apparent to readers of this disclosure after andbecause of reading it. Alternative means of implementing theaforementioned can be completed without departing from the scope of theclaims below. Certain features and subcombinations are of utility andmay be employed without reference to other features and subcombinationsand are contemplated within the scope of the claims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: at a base station:receiving location identifiers from a plurality of network devices;determining whether two or more of the plurality of network devices arein a defined proximity of the base station, wherein proximity of each ofthe two or more network devices is determined using the locationidentifiers corresponding to the two or more network devices; when thetwo or more of the plurality of network devices are determined to be inthe defined proximity of the base station: placing the two or morenetwork devices into one group, wherein the one group is based on thelocation identifiers relative to the defined proximity of the basestation; pooling available communication resources of the two or morenetwork devices of the one group together; dynamically modifying a modeof operation for each of the two or more network devices in the onegroup to a pooled mode, wherein the pooled mode of operation enableseach of the two or more network devices in the one group to share accessto the pooled available communication resources; and updating databaserecords associated with the one group of two or more network devices toindicate shared accessibility to the pooled communication resources, andto confirm that the one group of two or more network devices belongs toone or more customers associated with addresses that correspond to thelocation identifiers for the two or more network devices; and when thetwo or more of the plurality of network devices are determined to be outof the defined proximity of the base station: dynamically modifying amode of operation for each of the two or more network devices to anindependent mode, wherein the independent mode of operation does notallow the two or more network devices to share access to availablecommunication resources of other network devices.
 2. The method of claim1, wherein placing the two or more network devices into one groupfurther comprises creating relationships between network devices thatare within the defined proximity.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein therelationships may include any combination of: sibling, parent, or child.4. The method of claim 1, wherein determining whether two or more of theplurality of network devices are in a defined proximity of the basestation further comprises determining whether two or more of theplurality of network devices are within a range associated with anear-field communication channel generated by each of the networkdevices.
 5. The method of claim 4, further comprising removing, at thebase station, one or more network devices from the one group when theone or more network devices are no longer within a range associated withthe near-field communication channel.
 6. The method of claim 4, furthercomprising adding, at the base station, one or more additional networkdevices to the one group when the one or more additional network devicesare within a range associated with the near-field communication channel.7. The method of claim 6, further comprising: retrieving, by the basestation, the database record associated with the customer; andidentifying, by the base station, a limit on the number of networkdevices that may be associated with the customer at a locationcorresponding to the one group and the one or more additional networkdevices added.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein adding the one or moreadditional network devices to the one group further comprises checkingthe limit and rejecting the additional one or more network devices whenthe limit for the customer is reached.
 9. The method of claim 1, whereineach network device in the one group is assigned a shared groupidentifier.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the network devices areany of the following: digital signs with M2M components or televisionswith M2M components.
 11. The method of claim 1, wherein the availablecommunication resources, as pooled, include an aggregate of servicemaximums associated with each of the two or more network devices thatare part of the one group.